On the morning of the 7th day of Tet, at the company gate in Bien Hoa ward, Dong Nai province, business leaders and the grassroots trade union executive committee stood to welcome workers back to work after a 9-day long holiday.
Not only welcoming, business leaders and trade union organizations also give workers New Year gifts such as cakes and milk boxes. These gifts may not be materially large, but they have significant spiritual significance.
The company currently has about 14,000 employees. After Tet, by the 7th day of the lunar month, more than 90% of union members and employees have returned to work on schedule.
That number is a sign of stability and more deeply an expression of a labor relationship built on a foundation of respect and cohesion.
After Tet is always a sensitive time for the labor market. Many businesses are worried about the risk of personnel shortages and production line disruptions. Many places have to race to recruit, offer bonuses, and increase allowances to fill vacancies.
In that context, the image of leaders going to the factory gate to welcome workers carries a thought-provoking message: retaining workers not only starts from the payroll but also from attitude.
When welcomed with respect on the first day of returning to work, the feeling of being an important part of the collective will be strengthened. A cake, a box of milk at the beginning of spring may not change income, but may change mindset.
From that mindset, the production line operates more smoothly, the working atmosphere is less burdened, and confidence in the business is further enhanced.
What is noteworthy is the image of business leaders standing next to grassroots trade unions at the factory gate, sending a message about companionship. In modern labor relations, trade unions not only appear when there are disputes but also act as a soft bridge between businesses and workers, contributing to creating a positive working environment from specific actions.
For many years, the story of labor migration and labor shortage after Tet has become a familiar worry in many industrial localities. The problem of retaining workers cannot be solved only with short-term support packages but requires a long-term strategy, in which corporate culture plays a key role.
That culture does not lie in slogans hanging on the wall, but is expressed in the way businesses treat employees at specific times.
The sustainable development of a factory, an industrial park or an industrial locality ultimately begins with the stability of the labor force. And that stability is built not only by contract but by trust.
Keeping workers, after all, is not keeping them by constraint but by the feeling of being respected. Sometimes, it starts from very small things, right at the factory gate, in the early spring morning.
